Because I Love You!
by TardisBluePen
Summary: Basically an alternate ending to Sweeney Todd. Trust me, unlike any others you have read! So please give it a try! Sweenett of course! Title due to change. R&R please! No Flames! Starts from when the judge dies and mrs. lovett screams. POVs will change.
1. Because I Love You!

_Title might be changed! If anyone has ideas, I'm open to suggestions!_

_Hello everyone! This is my first Sweeney Todd story (and my first multi-chapter, yay! I'm so proud!), and I would be much obliged to give free pies and gin to anyone who review with either kind words or some CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Please do be nice! I do not want flames, however, if you must flame me for whatever reason, I will cook you into a delicious meat pie and use your flames to cook it! xP_

_I do realize I have changes some words to lyrics or lyrics to words, but I just felt that it worked better! Please let me know if they are OOC, I am very nervous about that! These characters are based off of Johnny Depp's and Helena BC's Sweeney Todd characters!  
_

_I tried to make the British accent sound good, but as I am not British myself, I don't know how well I did with that!_

_Disclaimer: You know the drill, people: I...OWN...NOTHING!! (Just some movies, posters, and dolls...xD)_

_Anyway, enough of my ranting! I really hope you enjoy and PLEASE review!!_

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**(Mrs. Lovett POV)**

With a third crack, the judge's body hit the floor. The sound echoed eerily across the walls of the bake house. Next to him had to be the Beadle, of course. But the third figure …it seemed unrecognizable at first. Moving towards the body, I could see that it was a "she". An even closer look showed me someone who looked vaguely familiar, although I could not place it. A woman dressed in rags. My eyes grew wide as, suddenly, something in my mind clicked.

I gasped.

"You."

I knew who this was. I had often tried to keep her away from the shop, always calling on Toby to send her off whenever I seen her come near (speaking of Toby, where was he?). But she had always come back. I hated the fact that I could never keep her away for good. I had always hoped that once I sent her off, that she would never come back. But tonight, she had. Once again, she hadn't listened to me. And now, here she was, lying on the bake house floor, dead. The beggar woman. But not just any beggar woman (for there were many roaming around the streets of London to choose from), as I had hoped. When I took a good look at her, I saw that she was actually pretty young. But it couldn't be her. I took an even closer look, trying to convince myself that there was no way that it could possibly be her. But my worst fears were suddenly confirmed when I noticed…She had yellow hair. And that's when I knew that it could be only her and no one else.

Lucy Barker. I walked closer to her, examining the body. Yes, that was her alright. There was no mistaking that pretty face (though it really wasn't that pretty, anymore). As I stood over the body, rigid with shock (and fear of what Mr. Todd would do if he found out), I felt a tug at my dress. Looking down, I spotted the judge and screamed my head off. I started struggling, trying to run. I clawed at his hands, trying to get free of his grip. I screamed again.

"Die! Die! God in 'eaven, die!!"

Mr. Todd had killed him! I could see the gash in his throat! So then, why wasn't he dead?

Finally, hitting over the head with a tray that had been used to carry pies, he stopped struggling. I moved far away from him, panting and the sound of footsteps brought me back to my senses. A voice called out:

"Mrs. Lovett?"

Realizing too late what I'd done, I frantically ran back to Lucy's body and began dragging it toward the bake oven as quickly as my strength would allow me. But it wasn't quick enough.

"Let me help you with these, Mrs. Lovett."

I froze. Turning around slowly, I saw Mr. T standing in the doorway. I realized I had to get him out of there; I could not let him see her, risking anything that could be possible between us.

"No, no love, that's quite alrigh', I can 'andle it by meself."

He was quite persistent.

"Nonsense, I insist. Now, go open the oven and I will take care of these."

"But…" I protested.

He had to leave…

"Go."

It was almost whispered, but I heard it as though he had shouted it. I continued to protest:

"Mistah T, I really think--"

Grabbing my arm and yanking me away from the body, he pushed me roughly towards the oven. He commanded me again, but this time he really had shouted it.

"Go!"

His eyes were upon me, burning straight into my own, with a fire as bright as the one roaring in the oven behind me. It was said with such intensity, that I did not dare to disobey. He kept his gaze upon me until I had turned back around and started toward the bake oven again. But I took my time. I was not eager to expose the blood hungry flames at the moment; I was actually more concerned on just getting out of there. But if I was to suddenly make a bolt for the door, Mr. T might become suspicious and then I would never be able to escape him. He would probably make me end up confessing everything to him and who knows what he would do next. Probably kill me. I glanced at the door…ah well, no point in trying to escape. Mr. T and the bodies were blocking the door, anyway. I could hear him grunting as he began lifting the body behind me. Seconds passed, but I could hear no footsteps, nor could I hear the dragging of a body.

I stopped, not even halfway to the oven, my mind racing.

I chanced a glance behind me, but my head froze mid-turn, upon hearing Mr. T's soft voice.

"'_**Don't I know you?' she said."**_

My breath was coming faster, and for some reason I could not seem to get the air into my lungs. Mr. Todd seemed to be working things out in his head, and without turning to me, without even moving an inch--

"_**You knew she lived."**_

Turning to face him, I noticed the emotion in his voice. It wasn't accusation, it wasn't hate…yet, it felt like the worst thing he had ever said to me. And I only had one thing to say to him, one excuse:

"_**I woz only thinkin' o' you."**_

Of course, I spent practically all my time thinking about him these days! There was hardly ever a time when I wasn't thinking about him. I guess that's why all of this had happened anyway. I had cared too much about him. But he just assumed that I hadn't told him about Lucy for my own selfish reasons. Well, when he put it like that, I guess it made sense. But he didn't even know the whole story, there was so much more to it than that! Lucy had poisoned herself, never listening to any words of reason. I tried to stop her, but she wouldn't have it! What was I supposed to do? By the time I had figured out what she had done, it was too late anyway!

He seemed to know exactly what I was thinking, and came to a conclusion.

"_**You lied to me."**_

I couldn't read the emotion behind his words. Said in the same way as before, he simply seemed to be in genuine shock…Heartbroken. For once, the tough-skinned, cold-hearted, stony-faced Sweeney Todd did not seem to know what to do. I was already drowning in my guilt.

_**No, no not lied at all.**_

I shook my head and started to walk towards him.

_**No I never lied.**_

He was barely listening. To him, I had lied. And that was all that mattered.

_**Lucy--**_

Already, he could think of nothing else. Like nothing else mattered in the slightest.

_**Said she took the poison, she did.**_

She was as good as dead…gone insane.

_**Never said that she died.**_

But that wouldn't matter to him. I hadn't told him the whole truth, and that was just as bad as lying.

_**Poor thing.**_

Poor Mr. T.

_**She lived, but it left 'er weak in the head.**_

I really should have shut my mouth there…

_**I've come home again.**_

_**All she did for months woz lie there in bed.**_

But my mouth didn't seem to be doing what my brain was telling it to…

_**Lucy…**_

_**Should 'ave been in 'ospital, wound up in Bedlam instead.**_

No one could have helped her, anyway…not after the arsenic.

_**Poor thing.**_

I had to stop…

_**Oh my god!**_

_**Bette' you should think she was dead.**_

I couldn't help myself…the words just wouldn't stop coming. Before I knew what was happening—I confessed.

_**Yes, I lied coz I--**_

Or so I thought.

I couldn't do it. I opened my mouth and tried again to make him see, see exactly why I had done what I'd done.

"I--"

Where had all the air gone? Why couldn't I seem to get any into my lungs? What was happening to me?

The sudden silence seemed to ring throughout the dungeon, shattered by Mr. Todd's broken voice.

"_**Lucy."**_

I gasped, infuriated. The nerve of him! Still thinking of her, not being able to see past her blonde hair, her pretty little face…still not being to see what she had really become!

My gasp seemed to bring him back to reality. He actually turned to look at me, a curious, wondering expression on his face.

"Does any of this really matter anymore, Mrs. Lovett? Lucy is dead."

He looked at Lucy once again, kneeled down and touched her cheek softly, before standing back up.

Turning back to me, a smile came onto his face. There was something strange about his smile, though…something fake.

He began to walk towards me, and I couldn't help but wonder why, after accusing me of lying to him, he was suddenly coming towards me, his arms outstretched, a smile on his face and—was he speaking of forgiveness? It didn't seem like him. What had happened to Mr. Todd?

He came closer to me, his arms held out. But I was not buying it. Sweeney Todd would never forgive anyone that easily. Especially not me, and especially _not _after what I had done to him. I started backing away and my back soon came against a wall, telling me that there was nowhere else to run. He kept coming closer, and I looked for means of escape, though I knew it was useless.

"It's alright, Mrs. Lovett. _**The history of the world, my pet…"**_

This wasn't right. His smile seemed forced, his razor was tight in his grip, and his eyes were glowing with an intenseness that could mean nothing good. Whatever he was trying to convince to me…he couldn't really expect me to believe it! This just couldn't possibly be true! Suddenly, I found that I didn't want him to come any closer. I tried to say something, anything! I had to keep him away!

"_**Oh Mr. Todd, no Mr. Todd, please let me be."**_

He just kept walking…

He was standing right in front of me.

"_**--Is learn forgiveness and try to forget."**_

He took me in his arms and began to waltz me around the room. This felt so wrong, but at the same time, so right. My sense of logic was fighting my feelings for control over my body. My head said "no", but my heart said "yes". My eyes closed, and I wanted to believe that this was real, that there could still be hope for us. Suddenly, I found myself singing about the life I had always dreamed about with him.

"_**By the sea, Mr. Todd, we'll be comfy cozy. By the sea, Mr. Todd, where there's no one nosy."**_

Unfortunately…

"_**But life is for the alive, my dear--"**_

My eyes snapped open.

"_**So, let's keep living it!"**_

Before I knew what was happening…

"_**Just keep living it!"**_

He had hurled me towards the oven.

"_**Really living it!"**_

Being that the oven was not open, however, the most he could do was pin me down upon it, but its surface was burning hot. I let out a gasp as I felt the burning metal door of the oven scald my skin. I could feel hot tears starting to sting my eyes. A squeal of pain escaped my lips. He didn't seem to notice…he was only focused on one thing.

"Why did you lie to me, Mrs. Lovett?"

The smile was gone. All that remained on his face now was anger. And that anger consumed him. My struggling to get away from him, the tears swimming in my eyes…it all seemed to go unnoticed by him. I could feel the metal door starting to burn through my dress.

"I told you, I didn't lie, I jus'…"

I couldn't find the words. An evil grin crept onto his face, and his hand found its way to my throat.

"You lied to me."

I grabbed at his hand, trying to find means for release. But again, my attempt was fruitless. His grip was too strong.

"Mr. Todd…"

One arm was finally free of his death grip, and I put it around his wrist and pulled. It seemed no use, but I had to keep trying…

He pressed the razor to my throat.

"You lied…"

Bloody 'ell, he sounded like a broken record. Could he think of nothing else?

"Mr. Todd, please…"

Suddenly, his grip loosened, but only for a split second as he threw me from the oven. I landed on the floor, gasping for breath, my newly acquired burns stinging.

I could feel tears starting to sting my eyes. Staring at the ground, I tried, once again, to tell him exactly why I had lied to him.

"I lied because…because--"

I forced myself to look at him. He hid his emotions far too well, for I could read nothing on his face, though I supposed he could read everything on mine. There was definitely anger there, but something else: he was trying to hide it. My mouth opened, but being unable to function, I simply closed it again and looked back at the ground.

Seconds passed in silence before Mr. T spoke again.

"I'm sure you have a very good reason for lying to me, Mrs. Lovett."

I looked at him again. There was a peculiar look on his face. One saying that it didn't matter, saying that he was going to kill me anyway. One saying that he didn't care anymore (if he ever had) about everything that had happened between us. I was furious! After everything I had done for him, everything I had sacrificed, every time I had put up with him and his obsession for vengeance (and I had never complained!), he was just going to get rid of me! Toss me out like one of my old meat pies, the worst pies in London…and I was the most rotten pie of all! He was going to pretend that I was never there, that I was not fortunate enough to come into his life and protect him from exactly this!

Enraged, I pushed myself off the floor, my muscles and burns aching in the process. The somewhat evil grin on his face flickered. I started angrily towards him, but soon stopped when his face was mere inches from my own. This was it, this was the moment I would show him how I truly felt about him…but it did not come. I could feel his breath on my face, his eyes boring into mine…and I couldn't do it. Surely, if I did anything to show my true feelings, even something as simple as a kiss, he would kill me for sure. Not that I was particularly afraid of death…I just wanted a life with him, one where he was not constantly thinking about revenge.

"You really wan' to know why I lied, Mistah T?"

Oh, how I wanted to kiss him. But I couldn't do it. Instead, I tried to come up with something else to cover up my strange action. However, being so close to him, close enough to press my lips to his always made me weak. My brain seemed to stop working.

There we were, Mr. T and I, standing in such close proximity that I could think of nothing else but what it would be like to kiss him. Neither one of us moved an inch. What could have been many seconds or even minutes later, a loud scraping noise brought us both back to our senses. I jumped and turned towards the sound, finding that it had come from the sewers. A small hand reached up, then another, soon followed by a head of very messy brown hair.

"Toby!"

I ran to him, embracing him in a hug.

"Mum! Thank god you're okay!"

I looked at him, confused.

"Wot are you talkin' 'bout, dearie?"

"I heard you and Mr. T yelling, then a body hit the floor and I couldn't hear your voice anymore! I was so afraid that something might have happened to you--"

Oh, the poor thing! Toby was still ranting.

"…and I couldn' leave ya, mum, I just couldn'!"

He glared up at Mr. Todd, wrapping his arms around me tightly, tears streaming down his face.

"Now Toby, dear, I'm quite alrigh', as you can see."

"You've got burns." His eyes scanned over my arms and shoulders.

I became a tad bit irritated. The boy just wouldn't give in until he had found proof of Mr. Todd's abuse, would he?

But sure enough, some clearly visible bright red patches had appeared on my skin, from where Mr. T had forced me against the oven.

The boy had a sharp eye. Seemed to look for almost any reason to accuse Mr. Todd of hurting me. And now that he had found one, I could see the accusation getting ready to burst forth from his mouth. Yes, maybe Mr. T had hurt me, but Toby didn't need to know that it was him. He had been through enough in one night without having Mr. T and I to worry about, too.

"That's alright, love, I jus' got a bit too close to the oven. Now, 'ow about we go upstairs, sit you down by the fire and get you a nice glass of gin?"

Toby looked unconvinced, but at the prospect of gin, he turned around and began to walk out of the bake house. He seemed surprised when he realized that I wasn't walking with him.

"Mum, aren't ya comin'?"

"Yes dearie, I just need to straighten up a few things with Mistah T."

"Then I'll wait for ya here. I'm not leavin' ya alone wit' 'im, mum!"

I walked over to him, kneeled down beside him and put my hand on his shoulder.

"I promise you, love…everything's fine. Nothing's going to 'appen that you'll need to worry about. Now, 'ow 'bout that gin, 'ey? I'll be up in jus' a few minutes."

"Promise?"

I looked him straight in the eyes.

"I promise."

He nodded, though he still had a grim look on his face. I smiled, kissed his head softly and stood up. Before I could go anywhere, however, he had thrown his arms around me again.

"Nothing's gonna harm you…" he whispered.

"Not while I'm around." I whispered back.

I ruffled his hair lightly, and he took one last look at me (and one last glare at Mr. T.), before finally turning around and heading back to the shop upstairs.

I just stood there after he left. It seemed like an eternity before I could look at Mr. T again. When I did, however, he was just staring back at his Lucy again. The look on his face was so heartbreaking, so painful, that I could actually feel the tears I had been trying to hold back, start up again. I walked slowly to where he was standing.

"Mistah T.?"

He didn't look at me, he didn't move…he didn't really show any sign that he had heard me at all.

"'ello?"

I stood right in front of him and tried to look him in the face, but remained still as he was.

I turned and started to walk away. There was no point trying to get through to him, especially if he was going to treat me like this! But then again, he had always treated me like this. I felt a sob escape my mouth and the tears started flowing again.

Almost at the door, I decided to take one more chance. Turning back to him, I told him what I thought I had been getting through to him during these past few months.

"I lied because I love you."

I hadn't meant to whisper it, but I guess my voice had just stopped working.

It was hard to tell whether he'd heard anything or not. I waited. It wasn't long before my worst fears were, once again, confirmed.

His head turned a fraction of an inch and his eyes actually left Lucy's body for the first time in what felt like ages. They landed on me instead, looking me straight in the eye.

"Wot?"

It was a whisper, but it felt like he had screamed it at me. I shivered.

"I said…I said…I--"

I said no more. His glare seemed to be hypnotizing me, making me unable to do anything of my own free will. He seemed to realize that I could tell him nothing more. But he didn't seem bothered by it at all. In fact, he merely turned back to the body…the damn body again!

That was it! I couldn't take it anymore! _I've always been there for you, I've taken care o' you, but since yer pissed at me, go an' mourn over your dead Lucy's damn corpse! O' yeah, that's definitely gonna bring 'er back to life._ Why couldn't he just understand that even if she was alive, they could never go back?! Just because I couldn't give him the life he remembered didn't mean that we couldn't still try! We could still have a life together, he and I and Toby.

I turned away and wiped the tears away from my face, willing them to not come back. Gathering all my courage, I turned back around, facing him.

"Why did I lie? Well, 'ere's yer bloody answer!" I muttered, hoping he wouldn't hear me, but I saw him look up from Lucy. I brought my hand up to stifle a dry sob trying to escape my mouth, but failed. Taking a deep breath, I looked him straight in the eyes.

"I lied because I love you, Sweeney Todd. I LIED BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!!"

He said nothing, he did nothing. Had he even been paying attention?! Course not! He never payed any bloody attention.

Deciding to make my message a little more clear, I walked up to him, stopping when his face was, once again, mere inches from my own.

"I could be twice the wife she was, and you know it."

Trying not to break down in tears right there, in front of him, I forced myself to just turn around and walk back up the stairs. At the foot of the stairs, I stopped my back to him.

"Where would you be without me, 'ey? You would probably be in jail or dead or worse! But I 'elped you, Mr. Todd, I saved you. Could yer Lucy have done that? Do ya really think that…that—_thing_ could 'ave loved you, could 'ave cared fer you like me?"

I didn't wait to see his reaction, although I could have sworn I heard a soft "Oh my god". But I could never be too sure. Nevertheless, I payed it no attention as I gathered up all my energy just to keep my legs moving.

Continuing up the stairs, I noticed that no matter how much I willed myself not to cry, the tears would no longer stay back; but had I stayed 10 more seconds and perhaps, actually bothered to listen, I might have heard the softly muttered "What have I done?" fall from Sweeney's lips.

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_You know, every time you review, a Mrs. Lovett gets saved from being pushed into a big, burning furnace by a mean, scary, evil Sweeney! xD So please, make my day: push that little purple button and say what you need to! (No flames, unless you want to be made into a pie!) xD_

_Free gin and pies for the lot of you! xD_

_Until next time: (maybe I'll give you a nice, tense cliffhanger!) xD_

_-ByTheBeautifulSea_


	2. Sweeney's Conscience

_Omigod, I haven't updated in FOREVER!!!! AND I AM SORRY!!!! I have a buttload of excuses, but I won't weigh you down with all of them, cos they will probably bore you to death!! So, because it is Christmas, I decided to get off my lazy arse, and post this second chapter to you all! Thank you to everyone who reviewed/alerted/faved last time, I dearly hope you have not given up on this story!! I shall now stop my rambling, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I do not have a beta, so please forgive any mistakes._

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_Italics _are Sweeney's thoughts

_Italics _inside ' ' are the voice (inside Sweeney's head) aka his "conscience"

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**(3****rd**** Person POV)**

He stood still, stiff, watching Mrs. Lovett's retreating form, move back through the bake house. He kept his gaze on it, until it had finally moved out of sight. He wasn't sure how long he had stood there…seconds, minutes, hours. It seemed like time had frozen, leaving him in a limbo, his mind flooding with thoughts of Lucy and the judge, the little brat and Mrs. Lovett. _Damnit! _That bloody woman couldn't go 5 minutes without finding a way into his head! His hand clenched, around something cold and hard. His razor was in his hand, and he was not quite sure how it had gotten there, or when. It was being held so firmly that he soon found an imprint of the handle in his palm. He cursed.

Flicking the razor open, he tried to calm himself, letting his thumb caress its smooth blade. As more thoughts of that damned woman ran through his head, however, he suddenly felt a prick of pain. Looking down, he saw one single, precious ruby sliding down the blade. The razor dropped from his hand. Staggering over to Lucy, he sunk to his knees beside her. He took some of her hair in his hand. It was no longer yellow, like wheat. Instead, it had turned a dirty brown color, from all of her little romps in the streets. Disbelief flooded his mind, as he continued to stare at her body. He couldn't believe it was her. He couldn't believe his pure, lovely, angelic wife, could really have turned into the common whore that now lay before him.

He mentally slapped himself for that, and he felt his anger begin to rise again. _How dare Mrs. Lovett say such things about Lucy?! My Lucy would never do that! She was so sweet, so innocent, so virtuous…An absolute angel! And she loved me…No, she loved Benjamin. And he is dead now. And all because of that bloody judge!_ He picked the razor up and began pacing around the room. Trying anything to get all of these confusing thoughts out of his head: Thoughts of Mrs. Lovett, the Judge, Mrs. Lovett, Lucy, the Beadle, Mrs. Lovett…Growling angrily, he clutched the razor even tighter.

He couldn't take it anymore! Drowning in thoughts about that damn baker when he should be mourning his Lucy! But strangely, he felt no mournful thoughts float through his mind. After all, he had already been mourning for her for 15 years! Could he possibly be forgetting about Lucy? Getting over his obsession with revenge and the judge, knowing that it was time to move on? _No!_ He would never forget his Lucy, she had never deserved any of this! But she had forgotten about him. Could he ever forgive her for that? Confused thoughts flooded his mind and he didn't know what to do! He suddenly lost control. Letting out a strangled yell, he suddenly threw the razor across the room! It hit the opposite wall and loudly clunked to the floor. He stood there, breathing heavily, for quite some time. His thoughts began to consume him once again.

He should have killed Mrs. Lovett when he had the chance! Why hadn't he done it? He had had her, writhing in pain, the razor pressed to her throat, one flick of the wrist would have cut her jugular straight open. Was he going soft? Why hadn't he been able to finish the job?

'_You love her.'_

"No…"

'_You do.'_

"No!"

'_You do and you know it. Why do you think you couldn't conjure up the guts to do it? You've had so many chances.'_

"I do not love her! She lied about Lucy! That insufferable woman deserves to be made into one of her own bloody pies!"

'_Then why don't you follow her and finish the job? Go ahead. As you just said, she lied about Lucy, she deserves it.' _The voice made a tempting point.

Sweeney collapsed on the floor of the bake house, head in his hands, and let out a low growl. He must have, indeed, been going crazy, talking to a voice in his head. Even crazier, still, it couldn't be getting through to him. Nothing he felt for Mrs. Lovett had changed. It couldn't change! He simply wouldn't allow it! He couldn't feel anything towards Mrs. Lovett, but hate. He just couldn't! She deserved to die, and all the pain in the world still wasn't enough to make her pay for what she'd done.

The voice seemed to have read his mind. Not surprising, though, considering the voice was a part of it…

'_Ah, but do you not realize? What she is feeling right now, is more hurtful than all the pain in the world. It is the worst type of pain anyone can feel.'_

"Oh really?" Sweeney growled. "What pain is that?"

'_Unrequited love. And admit it-even after everything she's done, after all the crimes she's committed-you don't want to see her dead.'_

"I do! She deserves a slow, painful death for doing what she did!"

Sweeney grabbed the razor, clutching it to his chest, wishing the voice had a throat he could slit.

'_And what did she do, exactly? Try to protect you? Try to save you from any more pain? Lucy was worse than dead. She didn't recognize you and nothing would have ever changed that.'_

"She did recognize me!"

'_But do you really think that you could go back to the way you were?'_

Sweeney stood up abruptly.

'_Lucy would not have been able to get back anything she had lost after she took the poison.'_

"Well, we'll never know now, will we?"

'_She lost everything that night. The arsenic completely destroyed her. Her memory, her beauty, her life…everything you remember about the young, sweet, beautiful Lucy, is no more.'_

"But she remembered me!"

'_She didn't remember __you__, she merely recognized your face. She doesn't remember anything about Benjamin. She probably doesn't remember anything earlier than what she did yesterday. Even if she did remember you, do you think she'd still want you? After all the crimes you've committed? The Benjamin Barker she was married to is dead. You've become a monster.'_

Sweeney was getting angrier and angrier by the second. And then, the voice took it too far.

'_Are you such a fool, to even think that she would still love the man you are now, Mr. Sweeney Todd?'_

Sweeney let out a strangled yell.

"SHUT UP!!"

His arm drew back, and in the blink of an eye, his razor was flying across the bake house for the second time. Breathing heavily, he began to pace.

What normally would have calmed him down was only causing to irk him further. He could feel the anger, pumping through his veins. Anger at the judge for stealing his Lucy, anger at Mrs. Lovett for loving him so unconditionally, anger at the voice being so damn right, but mostly anger at himself.

He hated Mrs. Lovett for what she had started to do to him. He hated himself even more for letting her. He hated himself for feeling weak in her presence, hated himself for feeling guilty when he caused her pain (no matter how much she may have deserved it), and he especially hated himself for feeling…something towards her. Something that was not loathing, not disgust, not anger. The more he thought about this strange new feeling for her, the more he could feel his urge to kill, slowly dripping away.

_No!_

He tried to stop it, tried to keep it inside him. He thought of Lucy, of the judge, of how Mrs. Lovett had lied to him and how she deserved to die! He was not going soft, he had to finish this! He quickly crossed the room to pick up his precious friend. The dried blood on it reflected in the firelight of the bake oven. But for once, not the blood of those unfortunate enough to come up to his shop for a shave. Not a customer's blood. But his blood…Sweeney suddenly felt very sick.

'_It's a shock, isn't it?'_

"What?" Sweeney growled, still staring intently at the razor.

'_To see the friend you hold so dear, the accomplice that helped you spill the blood of so many innocents, do the same to you?'_

"It's not the same."

'_Oh, isn't it? How so?'_

"First of all, Judge Turpin and the Beadle were no innocents. They deserved to die just as much as any of the other miscreants who set foot in my shop. Second of all, it was Mrs. Lovett's idea to put the bloody bodies into her pies. I was just helping her out."

'"_Just helping her out", you say? You could have said no, Sweeney. Why were you so eager to help Mrs. Lovett?'_

Sweeney remained silent.

'_Correct me if I'm wrong, but I have a feeling that, perhaps, you enjoyed seeing her happy. You liked the way her smile seemed to brighten up the room. You enjoyed hearing her laugh and sing, because her voice seemed to make your spirit soar. You enjoyed feeling her touch you, because you secretly enjoyed the feeling it gave you deep inside? Admit it: You enjoyed watching her love you, because you knew you felt the same way.'_

"But, I do not love her." Sweeney whispered.

'_And now, just when your revenge was complete, just when she thought all her dreams might have a chance of coming true, you turned on her. You tried to kill her. You broke her heart. And now you've got a cut on your finger. Taking on a little self-punishment, are we? Feeling a little…guilty?'_

"I do not feel guilty!"

Sweeney stared at the cut on his finger.

"It was an accident." He whispered.

'_Perhaps it was. Perhaps not. You never were one to feel pain, Sweeney Todd. But, now…this cut on your finger, it hurts, doesn't it? Pain hurts. Perhaps now, you might realize how Mrs. Lovett feels. All you have to do is imagine this pain, a hundred times worse…on the inside. On your heart.'_

"Lucy…"

'_That's right. This is how you must've felt when you lost Lucy, isn't it?'_

Sweeney said nothing.

'_Ah, see, I thought I might get through to you. Seems like you still have some pieces of Benjamin Barker left in that cold heart of yours after all.'_

"No! How many times have I told you, that man is dead! He is gone! This body is under the control of Sweeney Todd now. Revenge is all that matters to him."

'_What now, then? Your revenge has been taken. What do you plan to do now, huh? Did you think about what you were going to do after you killed the judge?'_

Sweeney was quiet, thinking intently.

'_Surely, you can't stay here. What if the boy has gone to the law? The cops will soon be ravaging the shop. After everything that has happened, now that you have completed your revenge and are finally a free man, do you really want to be discovered? Be put behind bars again?'_

Oh, there was no way in hell Sweeney was going back to Australia.

'_You could get away, you know. Mrs. Lovett wanted to go to the sea. If the two of you could help each other out-'_

"I don't need any help from that blasted woman!"

'_Ah, but do you not remember? You used to be very fond of that woman. Years and years ago, you used to have feelings for your landlady.'_

"Those were Benjamin Barker's feelings! That man is dead! Sweeney Todd feels nothing, for no one! And certainly nothing, less than nothing, for that harlot! What Benjamin Barker may have felt is gone. She lied, and that's all that matters."

'_She only lied to protect you, you know. To save you the pain of seeing Lucy like that. She didn't want to see you hurt. Is it such a crime that she cared so much for you?'_

Sweeney snorted.

"If she really cared for me, she'd just leave me alone."

The voice was silent. Sweeney heard footsteps on the stairs, and abruptly spun around. The door swung open, revealing the last person he wanted to see.

"What are you doing here?"

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_Okay, so I know most of you have probably guessed who is there at the end (and I won't say who), and you are probably right. But you'll all just have to wait until the next chapter to find out. And I promise I will try to update faster this time! So, please review! Whether you love it, hate it, despise it, I wanna hear about it! So, press that little purple button, and make my day!_

_I HAVE CHANGED A FEW THINGS FOR MY STORY!!!!!!_

_First of all, I know what I said about Sweeney having feelings for Mrs. Lovett "years and years ago". Yes, I thought that it would give the story an interesting little twist. So basically, before Sweeney met Lucy, he used to have "feelings" for Mrs. Lovett._

_Second of all, yes, Sweeney had been mourning for Lucy for 15 years. When he was carted off to Australia, she was depressed that he was being taken away, and she was being forced to marry the Judge. He was sad because he knew there was nothing he could do about it._

_Third, the voice is trying to convince Sweeney that he really does love Mrs. Lovett. It has some interesting tactics. If you like the voice, good news: it will be back in future chapters!_

_I hope that all makes sense. It won't matter too much to the actual plotline (yes! There is a plotline!!)_

_FREE PIES AND GIN IF YOU REVIEW!!!!_


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